XN000022-1984-11-21 — Page 27

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 1984

25

CRACKDOWN ON FAKE COMPUTER PRODUCTS

*****

SINCE FEBRUARY LAST YEAR, THE CUSTOMS AND EXCISE DEPARTMENT HAS SEIZED OVER $600 000 WORTH OF COUNTERFEIT COMPUTER PRODUCTS IN 13 MAJOR OPERATIONS.

THIS WAS STATED TODAY BY MR JOHN HOWARD, PRINCIPAL INDUSTRY OFFICER OF THE DEPARTMENT'S TRADE CONTROLS AND INVESTIGATION BRANCH.

THE OPERATIONS INVOLVED 94 RAIDS AND GOODS SEIZED INCLUDED COMPUTER SETS, MANUALS AND DISKETTES.

FORTY OFFENDERS HAD BEEN PROSECUTED, WITH FINES TOPPING $120 000, MR HOWARD SAID.

HE WAS SPEAKING AT AN INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON +COUNTERFEIT COMPUTERS: PROTECTION AND ENFORCEMENT BY WAY OF CRIMINAL LAW IN HONG KONG. +

+TOWARDS THE END OF 1982, IT BECAME APPARENT THAT THE COMPUTER INDUSTRY WAS THE SUBJECT OF WIDESPREAD COUNTERFEITING, AND THAT THIS MALPRACTICE WAS BEING PERPETRATED IN SOUTH EAST ASIAN COUNTRIES WITH HONG KONG PLAYING A ROLE AS AN ASSEMBLING, RETAIL AND DISTRIBUTION CENTRE.

+THIS IS PROBABLY BECAUSE OF OUR FREE MARKET CONDITIONS, THE EXPERTISE AND ENTERPRISE OF OUR TRADING COMMUNITY AND THE HUGE PROF ITS TO BE DERIVED FROM THE MARKETING AND DISTRIBUTION OF COUNTERFEIT GOODS TO ORDERS FROM OVERSEAS BUYERS.

*WE ALSO HAVE HAD OUR PROBLEMS WITH MOST TYPES OF FAKE PRODUCTS BOTH FOR THE LOCAL AND EXPORT MARKETS, HE SAID.

+

+HOWEVER, IN THIS REGARD, WE PRIDE OURSELVES ON HAVING SOME OF THE MOST EFFECTIVE ENFORCEMENT LAWS TO COMBAT THIS ILLICIT TRADE, AND THE RESULTS OF OUR ENFORCEMENT OVER THE LAST SEVEN TO EIGHT YEARS ARE IMPRESSIVE, THOUGH THERE IS CERTAINLY NO NEED FOR COMPLACENCY.+

MR HOWARD POINTED OUT THAT ONLY A VERY SMALL PROPORTION OF HONG KONG EXPORTS WERE FALSELY REPRESENTED AND THAT HONG KONG GOODS HAD OVER THE YEARS REACHED A HIGH STANDARD OF QUALITY AND SOPHISTICATION IN THEIR OWN RIGHT.

/26